Tennis legend Bjorn Borg was one of the most dominant players of his time, becoming the first man to win 11 Grand Slam titles. While many will agree that he was one of a kind, the “Ice Man” revealed which player he feels most similar to.
In an interview with The New York Times, Borg said that Rafael Nadal is the player whose game most resembles his own. “I grew up on clay. Nadal grew up on clay. He’s the one,” he said when asked who he feels resembles him. “To see him play on clay courts, it’s so fantastic. He’s unbelievable. I can relate to how he knows how to move players around the court.”
That same year, he shared similar comments with El Español, amid the celebration of the Laver Cup. “The comparison is hard because many years have passed and this sport has changed a lot, but I think that I can establish a parallel between my way of playing and his,” he said about Nadal. “The [playing at the] back of the court, the work in every point, the concentration.”
Actually, there are several coincidences in both of their careers: Borg became No. 1 for the first time at 21 years old, Nadal at 22 years old. The Swede won his first major at 18, Nadal at 19. They both have been dominant on clay courts, with Borg being the player with the second-best percentage on the surface (86.1%), just behind Nadal (90.5%).
Borg won 32 of his 66 career titles on clay, including six Roland Garros crowns. While Borg is probably best known for having a record of five consecutive Wimbledon titles (1976–1980), the Swedish star actually has a better record on clay (81.8%) than on grass.
Bjorn Borg’s amazing career: 11 Grand Slams and 77 titles
Bjorn Borg won 77 top-level titles during a career that redefined the sport in the 1970s. Apart from his 11 Grand Slam crowns, he remains the only man to have completed the Channel Slam (winning Roland Garros and Wimbledon in the same year) three times.
From 1976 to 1981, Borg reached six consecutive Wimbledon finals, a streak unmatched until Roger Federer’s seven from 2003 to 2009. Beyond the numbers, Borg became one of tennis’s first global stars, bringing new crowds to the game.